Christina Aguilera Writes Long Love Letter to Fans

The often-reticent Christina Aguilera expressed her emotions in a big way late Wednesday, posting a long letter to fans on her website – a 2,200-word meditation on art, love, struggle and transcendence in which she frames her own ideas of success in a business dominated by style rather than substance.

"I may get quiet at times, but when I do have something to say, I mean every word," The Voice coach, 32, writes. "I decided to share my thoughts with you at length and tell you openly how I feel."

And how does she feel? Grateful, inspired, empathetic and fully at peace.

"Thank you for filling my soul with melody and song … lyrics and love … and giving me a safe place I feel comforted in being brave enough to always bare my soul and come from an honest and genuine place," she writes.

On the subject of the music business, she says she's embraced her purer instincts in an industry where success is measured mostly in buzz and awards.

"Money and fame have never been the sole driving force of motivation for me to achieve what I have," she writes. "I know firsthand that having success alone, is not going to fill you up. Looking back, I recall a few career highlights that are wonderful to have had the experience of, but at the end of the day, weren't my happiest stages in life."

She adds: "I am enjoying life now more than ever before."

Aguilera speaks of the liberating power of iconoclasm – "Be fearless enough to be a conversation piece … Speak your own truth," she writes – and wraps up with words of encouragement for fans who might be struggling with their own confidence or artistic direction, pledging to believe in them as much as they have believed in her.

"As always, thank you for accepting me for who I am. Being human – flaws and all," she writes. "We're all made up of beautiful imperfections."